The center, located in Trevisio, Italy, is designed by the talented spanish architect who conceived the project as a square box made up of nine squares. The square in the center emerges to take light from the height of the vestibule. The classrooms are arranged in the surrounding squares.

]]>mail@cadtopia.ca (John Morales)AcademicFri, 23 May 2008 05:39:36 +0000Polshek Partnership Architects - The Utah Museum of Natural Historyhttp://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/museums/the-utah-museum-of-natural-history/
http://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/museums/the-utah-museum-of-natural-history/The Utah Museum of Natural History, is an active research institution located at the University of Utah, that cares for over 1.5 million objects. It provides unique natural history experiences to Utah residents and tourists through traveling and permanent exhibits, special events and other programs.

The new building rests on a series of terraces that step up the hill and lay along the contours of the site, with minimal disruption to the adjacent natural landscape. In addition, running and hiking trails in the immediate area are preserved and enhanced.

Whitney Sander, principal architect of Sander Architects, has developed new concepts for the development of residential projects that are both ecological and economical. He labeled his concept the ‘Hybrid House’ since it would be partially prefabricated and then customized to suit the requirements of individual clients.

Residence for a Briard is a 3,800sf house that is the first example of Hybrid House, the invention of Sander Architects, LLC. Its structural frames and exterior walls and roof are all prefabricated off-site by warehouse manufacturers and shipped to the site in pieces on one flat-bed truck. The entire shell cost $22,000.

]]>camille@archinnovations.com (Camille Chami)HousesFri, 16 May 2008 08:54:17 +0000Lake|Flato Architects - The Government Canyon Visitor Centerhttp://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/civic/lake-flato-government-canyon-visitor-center/
http://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/civic/lake-flato-government-canyon-visitor-center/The Government Canyon Visitor Center by Lake|Flato Architects, An AIA/COTE Top Ten Green Project in 2007, floats in a field of native grasses and restored oaks at the mouth of the canyon, forming a gateway to the 8,600-acre Government Canyon State Natural Area , located in Bexar County outside of San Antonio, Texas.

The architects opted for an ecological approach for the project, distancing themselves from the convenient car-friendly concepts for natural parks. They designed their project that would have a minimal impact on the environment. That is particularly important for this site, since it borders the recharge zone of the Edwards Aquifer, the only source of drinking water for the city of San Antonio. The design also demonstrates sustainable design water use practices by conserving water, collecting rainwater, minimizing run-off and contaminants, and reducing the use of ground water.

]]>camille@archinnovations.com (Camille Chami)CivicTue, 13 May 2008 08:33:10 +0000Architype - Chilterns Gateway Centrehttp://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/civic/architype-chilterns-gateway-centre/
http://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/civic/architype-chilterns-gateway-centre/
The sleek new Visitor Centre, designed by Architype, provides a unique
experience and vastly improved facilities for all those visiting the
magnificent landscape of Chiltern Hills at Dunstable Downs, north of
London, England.

The purpose designed Centre replaces an
undistinguished kiosk snack bar with basic visitor facilities, which
until now has serviced visitors.

Located at Bedfordshire’s highest point – 798 ft above sea level - the
new building will provide a rich visitor experience for the 400,000
people who visit each year.
]]>mail@cadtopia.ca (Lee Fischer)CivicThu, 08 May 2008 07:10:31 +0000Simone Giostra - Greenpix, a Zero-Energy Media Wallhttp://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/civic/simone-giostra-greenpix-zero-energy-media-wallsimone-giostra-greenpix-zero-energy-media-wall/
http://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/civic/simone-giostra-greenpix-zero-energy-media-wallsimone-giostra-greenpix-zero-energy-media-wall/
Simone Giostra & Partners Architects have designed the GreenPix - Zero Energy Media Wall - a groundbreaking project applying sustainable and digital media technology to the curtain wall of Xicui Entertainment Complex in Beijing, near the site of the 2008 Olympics.

Featuring the largest color LED display worldwide and the first photovoltaic system integrated into a glass curtain wall in China, GreenPix transforms the building envelop into a self-sufficient organic system, harvesting solar energy by day and using it to illuminate the screen after dark, mirroring a day’s climatic cycle. Arup provided engineering services for the project.

“The Media Wall will provide the city of Beijing with its first venue
dedicated to digital media art, while offering the most radical example
of sustainable technology applied to an entire building’s envelope to
date”, said Simone Giostra.

Since opening its doors in 2006, the Frederic C. Hamilton Building has become one of downtown Denver’s most recognizable landmarks, drawing thousands of visitors. The project, designed by Studio Daniel Libeskind and Davis Partnership, consists of a 146,000ft² addition to the existing Denver Art Museum, built originally in 1971, almost doubling its size.

Consisting of a separate building this major expansion tied to the existing museum through a 100ft long enclosed walkway. It hosts the main entrance to the museum complex, as well as a collection of Modern and contemporary art, a collection of Oceanic art and African Art, a theatre and a rooftop sculpture garden with views over the scenic Rocky Mountain range.

]]>camille@archinnovations.com (Camille Chami)MuseumsFri, 02 May 2008 09:50:45 +0000Ibarra Rosano Design Architects - Downing Residencehttp://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/houses/ibarra-rosano-design-architects-downing-residence/
http://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/houses/ibarra-rosano-design-architects-downing-residence/ The Downing Residence by Ibarra Rosano Design Architects is a carefully nested desert dwelling on a hillside west of Tucson organized between existing saguaros. The 3500 square foot design splits the floor plan into three smaller pavilion-like footprints in order to rest more gently between areas of dense vegetation. From a distance, the Downing Residence is barely discernable from its east-facing mountainside backdrop. The structure blends with the surrounding rock outcroppings as each of its three volumes sit reverently within a grove of saguaro that dot the hillside.

All photographs are by Bill Timmerman, courtesy of the Ibarra Rosano.

]]>camille@archinnovations.com (Camille Chami)HousesTue, 29 Apr 2008 08:05:42 +0000Steven Holl - T-Husene Development in Ørestad, Copenhagenhttp://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/mixed-use/steven-holl-t-husene-development/
http://www.archinnovations.com/featured-projects/mixed-use/steven-holl-t-husene-development/The T-Husene is a mixed-use development, for Ørestad, Copenhagen (Denmark) presented by Steven Holl Architects for a direct commission from City Development in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Katsuhiro Miyamoto thrives on designing dwellings on challenging sites. As we saw in projects previously featured on Archinnovations, the architect carefully composes his projects from the constraint imposed by the surrounding density of the urban landscapes, developing his ideas despite the awkwardness of the site’s shapes and dimensions.

He proposes solutions that possess a powerful in their visual appeal while staying focused on the functional requirements of the house and the creation of user-centric living space.